1. Identify the specific organizational objectives - such as increasing market share, earnings or return on investment; maintaining current funding levels; attracting top-level people to your organization, or bringing about regulatory changes that would benefit your organization - that you want the interview to advance.

2. Identify and analyze the key publics to be reached through the interview. A key public is any group of people who share a common self- interest - that is, a common set of goals and objectives - on any given issue, topic or development. You must determine what you want each public to do to help you attain your goals and objectives, then determine whether that public is doing what you want. If the public is acting in the desired way, determine the set of attitudes and perceptions that motivates the public to do so, and reinforce those attitudes and perceptions. If you wish to change the actions of a given public, first determine what attitudes and perceptions are causing the public to act the way it is and then identify what attitudes and perceptions the public would have to adopt in order for it to act in the desired way. Your communications objective is to bring about those attitudinal and perceptual changes.

3. Identify the topics that the reporter might raise in the interview. You do this by identifying whatever is newsworthy about your organization.

4. Identify the one, two or three key messages that you want reported on each topic. A key message is that fact, idea or observation that will induce your key publics to adopt attitudes and perceptions that will motivate them to act in ways that will help you attain your goals and objectives. And, of course, the best what to motivate people is to show how they would benefit from a particular course of action. To determine whether a message is effective, put yourselves in the shoes of the people you're trying to influence and ask yourself: "What's in it for me?"

5. Prepare a detailed Q&A sheet. This is a vital preparation tool that will enable you to judge objectively whether you are following the rules for giving effective interviews. (See Media Tips numbers 5, 6 and 7.)

6. Practice giving interviews in bear-pit sessions.